Designing a Wallet System That Made Mentorship Feel Earned

Date

Date

Date

January 12, 2025

January 12, 2025

January 12, 2025

Author

Author

Author

Amish Srivastava (Mentorpedia)

Amish Srivastava (Mentorpedia)

Amish Srivastava (Mentorpedia)

💳 Designing a Wallet System That Made Mentorship Feel Earned

A case study on building in-app currency, credibility, and habit loops in Mentorpedia

TL;DR

To drive more meaningful interactions and reduce spam bookings, we introduced a wallet and credit system inside Mentorpedia — a mentorship platform I built for students and early professionals. It added friction in the right places, helped establish mentor respect, and introduced the foundation for a future rewards and freemium model.

🧠 The Problem

Early in Mentorpedia's beta, we saw a surprising pattern:

  • Students were booking sessions casually… then not showing up

  • Some mentors were overwhelmed with back-to-back requests

  • There was no system to signal effort, intent, or credibility

It was free, frictionless — but sometimes, that worked against us.

So I asked:

“Can we make mentorship feel more intentional — without making it feel expensive?”

🎯 Our Goal

  • Add accountability to student bookings

  • Encourage engagement, not just signups

  • Offer mentors a signal of student seriousness

  • Lay groundwork for future incentives and gamified loops

🛠 Solution: Mentorpedia Wallet + Credits

We introduced a Wallet System where:

  • Every new user got 5 free credits

  • Booking a mentor session cost 1–3 credits, depending on mentor type

  • Credits could be earned by:

    • Leaving feedback

    • Referring friends

    • Attending 3+ sessions in a month

  • Future roadmap included:

    • Buy credits (freemium)

    • Mentor “giveaway” sessions

    • College leaderboard competitions

🔧 Technical Architecture

  • Firebase backend → Firestore for storing credit balance

  • Credits deducted via Cloud Functions post-booking

  • Wallet UI built in React → integrated into user dashboard

  • Admin dashboard for setting mentor credit value per profile

🧪 Experiments

  • Tested friction: free vs paid credits → higher show-up rate with credit use

  • A/B tested “Credit Balance” widget location: top nav bar = highest usage

  • Referral tracking with UTM-based invite links tied to bonus credits

📈 Results

MetricBefore WalletAfter WalletNo-show rate32%12% ↓Feedback completion14%38% ↑Referral conversion<5%18%

Mentors also reported:

  • Better session quality

  • More thoughtful mentee questions

  • Higher follow-up rate

💡 What I Learned

  • Not all friction is bad — it can actually drive value perception

  • In-app currency isn't just functional — it's psychological

  • Students felt like they were earning mentorship, not just consuming it

  • It also gave us an economic loop for monetization (without feeling icky)

🔮 What’s Next

  • Dynamic credit pricing based on mentor demand

  • Credit gifting between peers

  • College-based team challenges for extra credits

  • Partner offers (free credits on purchasing Coursera/Udemy/etc.)

Final Thoughts

Building the Mentorpedia Wallet wasn’t about money.
It was about meaning.

By introducing a sense of value, effort, and reciprocity, we made mentorship more real — and more respected. And in the process, we learned that designing incentives = designing intention.

Want to explore the UX or copywriting around the wallet system?
→ Visit amishsri.framer.website
→ Or message me on LinkedIn

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Got questions?

I’m always excited to collaborate on innovative and exciting projects!

E-mail

amishsri2001@gmail.com

Phone

+91 7755885551

Got questions?

I’m always excited to collaborate on innovative and exciting projects!

E-mail

amishsri2001@gmail.com

Phone

+91 7755885551

Got questions?

I’m always excited to collaborate on innovative and exciting projects!

E-mail

amishsri2001@gmail.com

Phone

+91 7755885551

©2024 Amish Srivastava

©2024 Amish Srivastava

©2024 Amish Srivastava

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